What Juputoru said could rise a good point. The mods aren't here 24/7, all of us have lives, etc.
I realize that, and it is a valid point. If you reread my posts, you'd see that I never said the mods weren't doing their job. But if you say that you're inactive
because you "have a life," then many people would view that as a way of saying there's a problem but not doing anything about it. If your daily lives and lack of time are such a problem, then hire new moderators and fix the problem.
Again, I never said the mods weren't doing their job -- in fact, it's to their credit that this forum hasn't descended into total anarchy already (it certainly has the potential).
And posting rules are treated differently than sig rules. For example, I think it's harsh to ban someone for five meager spam posts spread across a few days. And when we warn someone, only they get the warning, and I believe only the other mods can see it. Usernotes too. There is no public system (That would be a little mean).
I wasn't referring to usernotes -- I'm aware that they're invisible to other users.
What I meant was, say, the following hypothetical exchange:
Member1: "Where do you get Rayquaza?"
Member2: "On top of Sky Pillar -- it's east of Pacifidlog Town."
MemberX: "Yeah, Rayquaza is totally awesome! But Mewtwo's better."
MemberY: "What are you talking about? Mewtwo's UGLY! Rayquaza totally pwns him!"
Member1: "Thanks 2, but how do I get past these cracks? I always fall through!"
Modulator: "Members X and Y, please stay on topic. I'm giving you a warning for SPAM."
Now, MemberZ comes in this thread, he's a new guy. "Oh hey," he thinks as he reads posts #3 and #4. "I'm going to join in too!" Then he suddenly notices Modulator's post, and thinks, "Wait a minute. This guy says to keep to one topic. I guess I won't post like that, or I'll get in trouble."
See? One less SPAM post.
Usernotes aren't visible, but this form of "public" warning -- similar to the concept of being put in stocks, though without the physical aspect and the level of humiliation (this is the internet, after all). And remember what's said in the Newbie Help Topic & FAQ thread?
"
Why shouldn't I SPAM?
The number one reason why you shouldn't, is that it's against the rules. SPAM is also a sign of a lower class. You can fast become known as a 'Spammer' and your reputation will drop."
If it's against the rules, and if the reputation thing (which I assume isn't referring to the old "good rep bad rep" vBulletin feature) is meant to refer to real online "credibility," then people would be able to see through their posts that certain people are SPAMing, and they won't be inclined to repeat the same behavior.
Let's also consider the SPP chat for a moment. Every time someone posts a #, a link, all caps, or certain swear words, they get banned for five minutes. Some people (several actually) think it's too harsh -- but the reply given is that it's required for a good experience for other visitors to the chat. I agree with that to an extent, but why isn't such strictness promoted in the forum? Being banned for five days in a forum is roughly analogous to a five minute chat ban, considering the fact that many chat conversations last less than a minute while many at a forum can last over a month.
And there's also no way to restrict posting of normal members, besides desginating some forums to be moderated, special members only, or due to rank.
It's possible to create usergroups that are unable to view a specific forum -- thus effectively "blocking" a notorious SPAMer from a certain forum. It's not even a ban -- and bans aren't an excessively harsh punishment, seeing as they're almost always temporary.
